Big Jamoke is an American Robust Porter named for the B-25 that Brewmaster Eric Marshall’s grandfather flew in WW II. A blend of five malts from Munich to Chocolate provide a deep mahogany color and aroma of toffee and roasted coffee. On the palate this beer is full-bodied with hints of bittersweet chocolate and toffee… while finishing smooth and dry from the addition of earthy hops.

Beer: Reviews & Ratings

Reviews by gnemesis:

1.06/5 rDev -73%look: 2 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

This is my first time reviewing an apparently infected beer so if this is frowned up please delete. I poured into snifter on 04.12.11. This bottle was an extra so I am not sure how it has been stored. I chilled it and then popped off the wax and cap. This was a huge gusher! I had to fill 3 glasses just to get enough beer to sample. The nose immediately smelled off. I'm no expert but I got burnt notes and loads of oxidation. I take a few sips and it is clearly not good. This beer (although waxed) is oxidized and undrinkable. Drain pour :(... The reviews here are mixed but it sounds like a decent beer. I will try another if I can find one and edit my review. (665 characters)

More User Reviews:

Head reaches high, then leaves big clumps of lace on the glass. A black color is all that was expected, and it was deliv- ered. Roasted edge of unsweetened chocolate, burnt raisin fruitiness and a level hop resin make up the nose. Smooth and creamy, with a bitty roasted bite that kicks things off. Deep charcoal and undertones of coffee and cocoa powder blanket the palate. Slight warmth of alcohol lends a burnt currant flavor, and the hops go leafy and earthy, which ends up complimenting the roasted flavors. Hint of yeast in the bittersweet finish. The Porter throws down hard in a robust manner without being so big that it detracts from drinkability. A serious Porter here. (739 characters)

The beer pours a dark reddish-brown color with a huge off-white head. The aroma is toffee, brown sugar and roasted malt. The flavor is toffee, chocolate and roasted malt. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. A good porter. (271 characters)

Big thanks to gawnphishin for the chance to try this. Very cool WWII-esque line-art graphics on the label (depicting the brewmaster's grandfather I think).

Poured from a waxed 22oz bomber into my Dogfish Head shaped pint glass.

Bottle conditioned I presume considering the enormous heft of rocky sponge-like foam that fills the glass despite a careful pour. Eventually it settles down to a messy smattering of light tan suds covering a very dark brown yet clear liquid with very faint rufous highlights. Superior retention, sticky thick lacing.

Roast malt has a woodsy aroma along with faint cocoa and vanilla. There is some caramel as well, though this could be a hint of diacetyl.

Very rich coffee, light smoke, faint toffee and bittersweet chocolate (as noted by the brewer), and an array of well blended specialty malts. Dry lightly bitter finish with somewhat grassy hop notes and maybe a whisper of citrus.

Mildly astringent, crisp, though perhaps over-carbonated for the style.

Unique, bold, and flavorful porter - it tastes like some "Imperial" porters I've had except without the high ABV or heavy roast qualities, which keeps the drinkability high.

Worth seeking out - this would be a regular purchase for me if I lived in the region (especially if I lacked access to Anchor, Deschutes, etc). (1,313 characters)

T: A touch of chocolate, roasted grain & herbal hops, some smokeyness & a touch of dark fruit up front. I could make an argument this skews more towards English porter, but it's too rich & beefy...Dark choclate, a touch of licorice & dryness surface as this warms, plus some chicory/molasses. Finishes roasty, dry & with a slight stringent/coffee ground bite with just a bit of booze burn on the roof of my mouth & a bit of baker's chocolate. Almost pulled a 4.5

Drinks very easy, a good stab at the style. Nice to see a beer from the Sooner state I can proudly share ( there are few others, but not always available ), well done Marshall! can't wait to try this on draft, preferably nitro or dare I dream? cask at Mc Nellies! (976 characters)

MBC's Big Jamoke pours up with a modest carbonation that creates a very creamy beige-khaki brown head that encompasses the very dark brown-mahogany body. The roasted malty aroma features cocao nibs, coffee grounds and blackstrap molasses with a slight plum fruitiness. Hints of some earthy/minty late hops emerge as it warms in hand. The flavor starts off with a pleasant caramel & butter toffee sweetness that is underscored by an subtle, but emerging bitterness that combines with the chocolate & roasted barley to create a substantial bittersweet finish. This bold medium to medium-full bodied robust porter shows just a touch of warmth with a pleasant creaminess and is amazingly drinkable on cask. This is a finely crafted brew blurs the line between a traditional Robust Porter & American Stout featuring a solid roastiness and powered by some warming alcohol making it a fine choice for those cold winter nights on the Frontier Strip! Here's to the brave airmen that flew the Big Jamoke (B-25)+others like her in WW2 and to the namesake beer that keeps its memory alive!

Poured from 22oz bottle. Thanks goes out to SuperNova777 for bringing this bottle over.

A- Pours a near black deep brown color. Hints of red highlight just hits the edge of the glass when held to the light. Two finger cocoa colored head shows medium retention. Lacing on the glass shows some light streaks when taking drinks.

S- Roasted malts with hints of chocolate in the front of the aroma. Coffee with a huge roast character to it and some toffee come in as a secondary aroma. Lastly in the ending of the nose is smoke, hints of roast, and light earthy hops.

T- Roasted malts in the front of the beer. This starts to give way to a light chocolate flavor with a hint of vanilla in the background. Toffee notes also jump out more so in the middle. Ending has more of a light smoked malt lingering with roasted coffee giving way to the dominate back flavor. Alcohol is light and only brushes the palate.

M- Medium mouthfeel. Carbonation is good for the style. Chocolate, roasted malts, and hint of smoke are left on the palate. Aftertaste is alcohol, light chocoalte, smoke, and hints of roasted coffee. Flavors were blended well together for the style I thought. Off flavors are nowhere to be found in this beer. Medium alcohol drying on the palate.

O- This beer was good but there seemed to be something that was not quite there. I liked it a lot but there was a little something missing that would have made this beer amazing. I thought the abv was well hidden and never became a forefront of the beer. (1,515 characters)

Pours black with mahogany edges. Big, fluffy khaki colored head. Roasted malt nose, with some chocolate, and light roasted coffee. There's a slight whiff of piny hops in the back. Big chocolate taste, with some light coffee roast notes, more roasted malts and a slight sweetness. Despite the big head, which seemed to allude to some carbonation issues, the feel was rather full, creamy and robust...quite wonderful on the palate. Overall, another solid, tasty Marshal offering! (491 characters)

Poured the beer into a standard pint glass. After I drank it I came to the conclusion that a snifter would be a better choice of glassware to highlight this beer strong features.

A- poured ruby red and turns pretty much pitch black in the glass. There is very little head initially and it quickly disapeared. There is no carbonation and this translates to a very flat unappealing beer. Almost looks like a glass of dark red wine.

S- It smells substantially better than it looks. A pleasent dark chocolate aroma up front followed by rosted malts and coffee. Very pleasant.

T- Very intense flavors of dark chocolate and roasted malts with some dark fruit on the end. Very balance flavors and hardly any hint of the alchohal.

M- Very light almost watery feel. Simmilar to drinking a glass of win or juice.

O- I took one look at this beer and thought I would hate it but overall I enjoyed drinking this beer and would enjoy it again in a heartbeat. Dispite its unappealing appearance this beer taste really good and is very easy to drink. It would be an excellant entry level beer for someone new to stouts and porters. This beer reminds me of an ex girlfriend I once had. She is not sexy but knows how to satisfy. (1,218 characters)

Poured this 22 oz. waxed, brown bottle into a Sierra Nevada Hops glass. No date. Created a giant glass of foam. Really the most ridiculous head I have ever seen. (The bottle was sitting for well over a month undisturbed before pouring.) The massive head was tan and very resilient. What beer remained in the bottle began to develop a head too! When the body finally settled it was a dark, opaque brown.

The smell was clean roasted grain. Lightly nutty.

The taste was coffee and cocoa. Some nice roasty char which left a bittering finish. Well hidden alcohol.

The mouthfeel was medium to thin in body. There was not much carbonation left in the beer, it spent itself on the over the top head. (694 characters)

Waxed 22oz bottle received in a trade with Coldmeat. No bottled on date. Poured at 55 degrees into a tumbler.

A: Cola brown body with an off white head. Initial pour foams up four to five inches. Yikes! Doesn't really settle down much at any point.

S: Musty chocolate malt, chalk/mineral, and distinct vinegar sourness. Also a bit of that plastic smell I have gotten with some other Marshall brews, although not as apparent as in the lighter ones.

T: Surprisingly much better than the smell. Bold but smooth malt brings out some heavy coffee flavors. As it warms, there's also a slight tartness which adds a little color to things. Bitterness goes well with the coffee flavors. This definitely leans toward the charred, dry side so that you don't get much of the chocolate flavors common with many big porters - quite similar to an Irish Dry Stout.

M: Body is a little light, but well-within style, and despite the ridiculous head, this doesn't seem at all over-carbonated.

Despite being stored at proper temperatures and refrigerated for hours prior to opening, the foam was out of control. That, combined with the sour smell had me expecting the worst. Turned out that flavor and texture were decent, but overall, another sub-par Marshall beer for me.

Thanks for the opportunity Chris.

Edit: Second bottle I had late 2010 was better. Still heavily carbonated but not tart or gushing. Still some chalky and plastic flavors. Too musty and earthy for me. But I'm pretty sure that I had a bad bottle last time and am raising the store to reflect this. (1,558 characters)